


Stella Puer

by orphan_account



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Ahsoka Tano Lives, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Trans, Chopper is an ass, Consensual Underage Sex, Dysfunctional Family, F/M, Family Drama, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Kanan 2: the daddening, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Multi, Non-Explicit Sex, Past Relationship(s), Pregnancy, Protective Siblings, Slow Build, Spacefamily, Trans Character, Trans Ezra, Trans Male Character, Transgender, Underage Relationship(s), Unplanned Pregnancy, chopper has hidden artistic talents, dad!kanan, maul deserves better, sibling relationships, supportive!sabine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-15
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-09-08 17:48:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8855035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: “Doesn't the base seem to be getting a bit... grey to you,” She asked, looking for all the world like the cat who knew they were about to catch the canary.Ezra felt himself let out a small breath, fighting a small grin. So that was her scheme. Well, it was better than hauling crates. “It's always been this dull, Sabine. Did you just notice? You put your artistic eye to shame,”-More tags will be added as the fic progresses.





	1. Prologue- 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, so I haven't written fic in years, not since gosh when I was 15 or so, but I had a dream that sparked this particular itch to write an au with trans Ezra. Especially after seeing how little trans fics there were! And, to throw no shade or anything but most others were hellaciously tropey and in a not good way. Standard offensive trans tropes. Eh. No story besides “LOL THIS GUY HAS A VAGINA” and that's just sad. So, here, the trans part does play a part and is part of the story but it is not THE story. I have a lot planned, let's just hope I can live up to it.
> 
> If you're trans and you see some places that need improvements on writing a trans character(I am cis/questioning aro lesbian woman)or things you think should be/want to be addressed or done, tell me! I love suggestions and ideas! GIVE THEM!!! ლ(ಠ益ಠლ
> 
> Oh, and it's up to you to tell me what the title means. No cheating with google translate!(;｀O´)o

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra leaves for a solo mission.

The ghost was cheery but quiet that morning, a lazy breakfast spread out on the small table that boasted actual food rather than rations or energy bars. The entire ship, docked on chopper base smelled like bacon and eggs and pancakes- Kanan had been somewhat opposed to spending credits on the real food but Hera had insisted. It had been months since they had all sat down and had any semblance of a real meal.

Ezra just wished he could enjoy it. The smell of food just made him sick to his stomach, and the cramps weren't helping. He had his forehead on the table, one hand halfheartedly clutching a mug of coffee that he wished he could enjoy. It had to be that time of the month, hadn't it. Just when they got a break, this had to pop its ugly head in.

Of course, next to no one knew why he was so out of it- but he had never been a morning person, and they were up _extra_ early today.

The only people who knew about his “problem” was Sabine and Zeb. Zeb knew, of course, because they had bunked together and that had just been a mine waiting to be stepped on. Thankfully Zeb didn't really care one way or another, it was none of his business.

Sabine only knew because her feminine hygiene products had been going missing for a few months right after he had joined and had ended up catching him red handed. She had then exasperatedly told him to just ask next time, and that was that.

They had encouraged him to tell the rest of the crew, but he just... couldn't. He didn't think badly of them but he was just, well, _afraid._ His parents had been supportive, but not many others were. So they had kept him at home most of the time, and that meant he hardly knew anybody. That's why no one had noticed an eight year old going missing or homeless, and if they did they didn't care enough to look for him or take him in.

And after Maul and Ahsoka’s close call with Vader, he wasn't willing to risk losing anyone.

A large, firm hand came down on his shoulder in the form of a pat, and he glanced up to see Zeb giving him a somewhat concerned look as he passed to go get a cup of coffee. “Hey kid, didn't sleep?” Zeb asked him casually, leaning against the counter. Ezra huffed slightly and nodded.

“Here, you should at least drink this, coffee is just gonna give you a headache.” Sabine said, suddenly next to him, and she placed a clear glass filled with icy water directly in front of him. He glanced up to her and she smiled and winked, gesturing to the glass with her eyes before strolling away to get her own breakfast.

Gingerly Ezra sat up and picked up the glass, faking a yawn, and took a sip. The water was much more bitter than usual, and he realized that Sabine had dissolved some medication in it for him and he mentally took a note to thank her later. For the moment, he just quickly downed the glass and slumped back in his seat.

“So, kid. Gonna go and meditate with kanan all day?” Zeb asked, and Kanan frowned, adjusting his mask. “Hey, I'm not out there _all_ day.” He huffed, and Hera rolled her eyes good naturedly and patted his arm.

“Actually I was uh... gonna work on my lightsabre.” He replied. It wasn't fully a lie, a piece had broken and he needed to fix it, but for the most part he was just going to sleep and be miserable. Also, it would be kind of impossible to concentrate with the cramps.

“Ezra, you've been neglecting your training, you should come meditate for a while.” Kanan said and Ezra groaned, head falling back against the chair. He could also tell even with the mask that Kanan was raising an eyebrow.

“I really didn't sleep is all, Kanan.”

“...” Kanan frowned. “... Alright,” he sighed.

After breakfast almost everyone went off to do their own thing, and Ezra was grateful for the chance to lock the door and climb into his own bunk.

* * *

 

Two weeks time saw them standing around the holoprojector, learning the layout of an imperial cadet facility where various rebel agents had gone missing. They were going to send Ezra in this time, as he had proved himself a good cadet spy last time. Since puberty he had also started to look very different, and the commanding officers deemed it safe for him to go back in. Kanan hadn't much appreciated the idea and neither did Hera, but Ezra was all too willing.

Commander Tano had seemed grim as she recited his orders, biting her tongue over similar thoughts she shared with his Jedi master.

But there was a greater good to attend to, and Ezra gave them all a dazzling grin, clad in senior cadet uniform with his helmet-under arm.

The little ship he used to get on-planet made an irritating _click-click-whrr_ sound the entire two hour ride.

As the stars stopped racing by in brilliant white streaks and he was lurched into real-time space once more, Ezra finally got a good look at the planet he was going to be spending at least a month on.

It looked miserable, to put it lightly, and he didn't even mean for himself. The entire planet was washed in an ugly, murky green-gray atmosphere that rendered the deep royal blue hue of its solid mass an ugly grayish blue that could only make one think of mold. The fluffy gray and black clouds torrenting thick sheets of rain that thickly coated the entirety of the planet didn't exactly help the mental image.

He was so going to get a cold at the end of all of this.

Where the main base was located, of course, was in one of the places that seemed to have endless rain. The helmet on his head as he stepped out of the pod-sized ship didn't help much against the downpour. He was soaked instantly, and even though his head was dry he felt as if he had just dove head first into a swamp of fetid water. It was hot and, humid, his skin felt both wet and clammy at the same time. It made him shiver.

Okay, so, gross miserable planet, check.

Sneaking into the line of newly-shipped senior recruits was far too easy. All he had to do is levitate a crate on the other side of the landing platform, sending all of the adults to investigate and he slid right in behind the group of teenagers. His fake ID and info was already programmed of course into his card and the empires database.

The troopers came back muttering about some wild animal and marched them all into the facility, datachecking every new senior cadet. His card, thankfully, proved trustworthy.

Here, his data rang up as Coren Veir, 17 year old male human from mandalore. Being of mandalorian decent would explain for his advanced skills. That was what Sabine said, anyway.

It was harder than he thought it would be this time around to stay in character and not be snippy with the empires dogs. Really, it should have been the other way around, but age didn't temper his discontent and hatred of these people. The cadets he just wished he could help. They were naive kids- forgetting that they were all the same age for a moment- believing  that they were going to make a difference and protect people. Boy, were they wrong.

After initiation into their new facilities they were all given their bunking assignments. The rooms were surprisingly not as cramped, only two to a room. He supposed that was simply because of how _big_ the base was. They even had their own bathrooms, which, for Ezra that was a lifesaver. It had been extremely hard the last time to keep his secret a secret, and now he was just glad that binders weren't an issue, seeing as his chest had mercifully stayed as flat as any man's all throughout puberty and stayed that way. It was a relief, and not just for these missions.

Ezra flopped back onto his bunk with a deep sigh that came out as more of an exaggerated huff.

“Not to happy with your bunk?” A voice said and he jolted, surging upwards into a sitting position too fast and hitting his head on the bar of the bead above him. He winced, hand reaching for where his lightsabre should be. It took him a hot second to steady himself, rubbing his forehead where he had hit it.

Finally, he looked at the other senior cadet. He was holding his hands up in a placating gesture, an easy grin on his face. “Little jumpy there? Forgot you had a roomie?”

Ezra was momentarily caught off guard once more. Shit, this guy was cute. Handsome, even. He was tall and broad shouldered, with dark curly hair, and... was that stubble? It should look stupid but he made it work, and Ezra was at a loss for words. His eyes were an interesting shade of green, and they were lit up in amusement, and-- he had to get a hold of himself. What was he, 15? Ogling a stranger-- a, well, very _cute_ , stranger-- Karbast, a stranger training to be part of the empire! Any other day, if he were part of the rebellion, he'd kick straight into flirting--

“Dude, you hit your head too hard?”

Oh. Shit. He'd just been staring at him slack-jawed and wide-eyed for a good few seconds now.

“Uh.” Smooth, Ezra, smooth.

“I'm joking! Joking,” the guy shoved his hands in his pockets, eyeing the top bunk. “Since you're down here, I'm gonna call dibs on the top bunk. Was so sure you'd have done that, actually.” The guy flashed him

A stellar grin, and Ezra knew he was doomed. And gay. So, so gay.

“Name’s Kell Gal, by the way.” _Kell_ said after a long moment, bending over to unlace his boots.

“... Coren Veir,” Ezra said. He watched kell out of the corner of his eye as he pretended to busy himself. He wasn't doing anything exciting really, just getting into his uniform-sanctioned sleeping clothes. It was almost lights out, and Ezra already knew this was going to be a long, long month.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you fancy yourself to draw some fan art that would be AMAZINGLY appreciated. You can link it to me here or on my tumblr or even my FA if you like.
> 
> Comments are appreciated!! <3
> 
> tumblr- http://owletfluff.tumblr.com/
> 
> FA- https://www.furaffinity.net/user/owletfluff/


	2. Prologue- 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra makes a maybe friend?

Three days went by without much incident. They didn't have a ton of things to do, having just arrived all of their classes and training hadn't quite been set up yet. It gave Ezra plenty of time to sneak around unseen, and by day two he had already collected three holodisks worth of info on the place. He now had an updated map, and for once in his life he was thankful for his slender figure that allowed him to still wriggle through the large vents. He also had leads on four of the several agents that were MIA. They were small leads grant it, more rumor of this-guy-disappeared-after-this-rumor-and-that-incident-that-led-to-so-and-so and so on, but it was a start. What other free time he had he tried to gage the rest of the senior cadets, see who was worth trying to turn and who was too deep in the empire to even be worth trying.

This found him leaned back against a floor-bolted table during a free social hour they were all required to attend to. Social conditioning, or whatever. He was mostly lost in his own thoughts, planning what he was going to do that night before they were all required to turn in and whose office to infiltrate, when he suddenly realized that his eye kept trailing back to his roommate across the room, Kell. He started when Kell looked at him, eyes locking for a moment, and when the guy Kell was talking to looked away for a moment, he winked at him. Ezra was so startled he almost jumped and he tore his eyes away, cheeks warm though he refused to admit he was blushing.

Holy shit.

What the fuck was _that?_

Ezra made sure he didn't even look his way again for the rest of the day. Kell just somehow knew how to immediately get right under his skin, and he didn't like it. He'd been easy enough to talk to, almost too easy, and this sudden... flirting? Could he even call it that? Was Kell THAT stupid, to try and flirt with another guy, in the academy, in the empire? Did he not know how much trouble he could get in for just fake flirting with the same sex this deep?

Unless-

Unless he knew that-- or thought-- saw that he was--? --no, that was impossible. He'd have outed him.

Ezra shook himself, and as he drug himself back to reality he caught the end of a conversation just at the end of his hearing.

“--and then he had been acting _so_ odd, paranoid you know? Real jumpy, I don't think he actually sleep at night. Then he was just... gone one day.”

“No, really? That's crazy! I thought he was just promoted or whatever.”

Ah, it was two of the cadets that had been here for a year or more.

“Whatever spooked him I don't want to know. Don't want to be the next one to just up and disappear.”

“I hear you.”

That was interesting. Had to be one of their agents they were talking about.

“Eavesdropping?” A voice sounded right by his shoulder, practically in his ear and Ezra jumped, spinning around and heart in his throat to see, of course, Kell.

“Don't do that!” He hissed, and however childish it still made the other man grin at him.

“It almost sounds like you don't want my company.” Kell said, voice dropping in mock hurt, and Ezra kind of wanted to strangle him.

“Good ear, then.” He glared at the taller man but found it fading rather quickly. “What do you want?”

“Hey, don't blame me but I heard them too. I was, uh, curious.” Kell said, and Ezra found himself relaxing a little. He could just play off as being curious, which wasn't exactly far from the truth anyway.

“I was curious about the rumors I had heard. Apparently some of them are true.” Ezra shrugged.

“... it, it doesn't seem right, does it?” Kell asked him suddenly, and when Ezra turned to look at him he was surprised to see how somber Kells expression was.

“... no it doesn't,” Ezra said. “But hey who are we to question the empire right?” He added after a moment and Kell glanced at him before shrugging.

“I guess. But... aren't we the empire? Without us, the empire is nothing. So shouldn't we be able to question ourselves?” Kell asked in turn, and Ezra didn't know how to respond. That was certainly not what he expected to hear at any point in his time here.

“I... I guess so.” He shrugged.

* * *

 

He was nearly halfway through his time limit and Ezra hadn't gotten much more information. Everything was really under lock and key, and he couldn't get much further than the rumors. He'd gotten plenty of dirt on the empire itself, but he cared more to find out what happened to their agents. He'd gotten some rumors that some of them were possibly being held right there at the base, but it wasn't like he could go breaking into every holding cell there. He'd get caught long before he got to the right cell.

Ezra started when their instructor went into a coughing fit, mentally kicking himself when he realized he'd let his mind wonder. Well, he had never had a very long attention span. Kanan could vouch for that. He sighed, leaning against his hand. This was more boring than listening to one of Kanan’s lectures.

Next to him, of course, was Kell and the other man leaned over a little, voice dropping to a whisper, “bit of a windbag huh? And I don't mean the coughing,”

Ezra had to cough to cover a laugh.

Thankfully the class was ending. He stood quickly when the teacher dismissed them, eager to get to what he was really here for. Before he could leave however Kell tapped him on the shoulder and he turned, raising an eyebrow. “Hey, want to do something... not so legal?” He asked, and Ezra stiffened. When he didn't object Kell took that as a que to continue. “This teacher always makes me suspicious. Let's see what he's up to.”

Okay then. That he did not expect. “What, you serious Kell?” He asked, voice low. The taller man nodded and Ezra had to think for a moment. This would be a great way to gain Kells trust AND info on the empire. But, what if it was a trap? He couldn't very well voice his doubts, and if he denied, that would probably break any sort of trust he already had. After a few long moments, Ezra glanced back to the front of the room before looking at Kell again, and he nodded. The wry smile he got in turn was all too easy to trust.

Half an hour later found him sneaking along behind Kell in a large vent. Kell had been naive enough to not think there were sensors in the vent but Ezra had silently used the Force to disable them. They were headed to the office of their teacher, Freis Curn, a name Kell had to remind him of. The man was just so utterly forgettable, especially in the face of the other imperial officers he was supposed to be keeping track of and getting dirt on.

“Coren, this way.” Kell whispered as they came up to a split in the vent. He went left, Ezra obediently following his lead. He could well make it there by himself, probably with his eyes closed and the force, but that wasn't information Kell had and nor did Kell know he had the place memorized. Kell had been here longer than him, after all.

They came up to the right vent after about five minutes by Ezra's estimate. Kell pulled out a small set of tools and Ezra chuckled, hiding it too late behind his hand. “What's so funny?” Kell asked, voice amused, and Ezra shook his head. “I didn't think you'd be one to carry something so out of uniform.”

“Oh, well excuse me for being prepared in ways the empire doesn't deem necessary to my uniform!” Kell huffs under his breath dramatically, and Ezra once more has to stifle a chuckle. He's enjoying this, far too much.

Kell brushed the hair from his face dramatically and got to work on the vent cover, Ezra sorely wishing he could use the force to speed it up. When the cover was off he carefully placed it inside of the vent, peering inside.

Freis Curn’s office was as bland, sleek and typical as any other imperial office. His was perhaps more ‘teaching’ geared and school typical, but it could easily pass for any regular military office.

Except for the small safe tucked into a false panel in the wall that the force rather insisted Ezra notice. That was interesting. He'd have to figure out a way to ’accidentally’ find it.

Kell hopped down into the room, landing silently he snuck up to the desk and carefully started opening drawers, rummaging through their contents and finding mostly essays needing to be graded and other boring paperwork. Not the dirt they were here for.

Ezra slid to the ground, the force aiding him in landing silently. He pretended to wonder over to where the panel was, and conveniently next to it was the bookshelf. He pretended to rummage through it, and kneeled down where he pretended to lose his balance for a moment and ‘accidentally’ knock into the panel hard enough to get it loose. “Hey! Kell, look at this,” he called to him, voice hissing as he tried to get his attention while whispering.

Kell looked over and grinned, trotting over and kneeling next to him, right in his persona bubble. “C’mon then let's see!” He whispered excitedly. Ezra grabbed the panel and wiggled it loose. “Hey, think you can get this safe open? I bet it doesn't have any alarms on it.” Kell nodded and got to work on the dial pad, plugging in a small device much in the way chopper would a ship, and after a minute the door clicked open.

Thousands of unmarked credits.

“Dude, holy shit.” Kell said softly, looking at him with wide eyes. “We- we gotta tell someone!” He made to stand but Ezra grabbed his arm. “No! I, mean,” he coughed, pulling Kell back down to his level. This could be used to he rebellions advantage. Blackmail Freis into helping the rebellion with this info. Plus, if they told the empire those credits would just go right back into the empires pocket, and while in the grand scheme it wasn't much, it was still something.

He had to think fast. What excuse was he going to tell Kell? He was supposed to be loyal to the empire here!

“W-wait, what will they do when you tell them? They'll ask how you got this supposed information, and you'll have to say you broke in. What'll they do to you Kell?” He paused. “And by that time Freis could know and move everything, so when they investigate there could be nothing here! Let's find a different way.” Boy, that was bad. There was _no_ way Kell would--

“--you're right, I hate to say it- even though this is wrong, we can't. Alright.” He was frowning severely and Ezra decided it didn't fit his features. He should be smiling.

Something in the force twinged, telling Ezra they needed to leave. _Now._

“Hey, Kell, we- we should go.” Ezra stood and pulled on his sleeve. Kell nodded, seeming confused but willing to follow, and Ezra rushed him up to the vent. He helped him up and Kell in turned helped him up through the vent. They managed to close it just in time as the door clicked open. They glanced at each other before heading back through the vents.  


Back in their shared room, for whatever reason, they started to laugh like idiots.

“That was- was amazing, Coren! I've never done anything like that in my life!” Kell exclaimed and did a sort of half jump, spinning around to face him and grab him by the shoulders. Ezra laughed, letting Kell manhandle him a little into a half spin in his excitement.

When he was released he coughed and grinned at him. “Really?” He asked. “Never?”

Kell shook his head no and Ezra snickered. “Wow, Mr. Straight and narrow over here.”

“Hardly _straight and narrow_ , really.” Kell chuckled.

“Oh shut up!”


	3. Prologue- 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra gets in deep.

Ezra ran a hand over his face and fell back onto his bed, debating if he should risk sneaking around. He'd had a good lead on two of the missing agents and several others were confirmed either dead or in an imperial prison. That was just as good as dead. The thought irked him. It was just like his parents...

His debate was answered by Kell waltzing in through the door, and when it closed he leaned against the wall, staring pointedly at him. “So, what's a pretty boy like you doing as a cadet? I'm sure with your looks you could get a much cushier job.” He said, and Ezra sighed and rolled his eyes, shifting to sit up and look at him.

“Oh? What about you then? I'm sure the same thing applies.” Wait. Did he really just say that? Oh, screw it. Flirting really couldn't hurt, could it? If anything, Kell would be more inclined to trust him, right? There really couldn't be any harm...

Kell chuckled. “I was beginning to think you were immune to my good looks.”

Ezra scoffed and waved him off. “First, I don't think the other cadets are, much less me. I-- I mean,” Kell laughed loudly, grinning, and he pushed off of the wall only to plop down on the bed next to him. Ezra shifted uncomfortably, skin prickling where he could feel kells body heat.

“Oh? So you're not immune?” He asked, leaning closer, and Ezra couldn't make himself lean back all that much.

“What's so wrong with having a little fun, right?” Kell asked softly, “The empire may not like it, but... were not hurting anyone, right? No one has to know...” Ezra almost jumped when his fingers brushed the top of his hand.

“N.. no one, not one,” Ezra heard himself say, and this time when Kell leaned closer he did lean away, face red. “I don't think I- not yet,”

Kell frowned but otherwise didn't push it, shifting upright. “Hey, at least we can have this... right?” He hummed, and Ezra looked down to see that Kell had taken hold of his hand. It was warm and soft despite the callouses from handling a blaster. He didn't pull away.

Oh, karabast, what was he letting himself get into?

* * *

 

It was admittedly fun, to watch Kell shoot a blaster or spar with other cadets during classes and training. It was even more fun to spar with him, he was good, and he didn't have to hold back as much as he did with the others.

Holding back had become a little irritating. He was used to working as hard as he could and pushing himself past his limits, surviving. Holding himself back so much was just something that wasn't in his nature.

It wasn't all bad though. He was getting to know some of the future big shots of the empire. Kell, for sure. There was a woman named Fuer who was undoubtedly going to be a terror of a general. She was sharp as a fox and quick as a whip, and just a little terrifying. She hit like a sledgehammer, too.

Another was a woman named Dis, she was built like a rock and rivaled Zeb in strength. She was not someone he wanted to meet on the battlefield.

Among those who... weren't exactly going to make it into the history books was a scrawny nerdy guy named Fen, he was good with history but not much else, but he had big dreams to lead a star cruiser. That wasn't exactly something Ezra could see happening. At best, a historian keeping the books filed. He almost felt bad for him.

He narrowly dodged a right hook to his jaw, jumping back he ducked and lunged forwards again, catching Kell around the waist they fell to the floor grappling for control.

It felt good to spar. It was relaxing in away, he could focus on just this and not think for a few minutes. He won three matches already, so he decided to throw this one so he didn't have to. He let Kell pin him, their faces dangerously close for a good few seconds that made Ezra stiffen, but Kell pulled away and stood, holding a hand out to him. He took the proffered hand and stood, dusting himself off.

“You have been making good progress, Kell.” Their instructor said. He was a dusty old man that had never relaxed his posture from anything but perfect in his entire life. Ezra couldn't really remember his name. The instructor tapped his cane and everyone fell to attention.

“That’s the end of class for today. Work on your forms.” He dismissed them rather distractedly, leaning down to listen to the cadet that had run in from the hallway and was whispering urgently to him. He left In a flourish, leaving the rest of them to do as they will.

Ezra decided with everyone so distracted he could leave and gather intel. He slipped away and down the hall, walking around aimlessly until he was sure no one had followed him. He found a vent, and used the force to open it and get inside, the screws locking back into place as he started crawling away. It was nice to use the force so actively after over two weeks, he was starting to feel cramped, like something had been caged with a missing key within him. He didn't really know where he was going but he let the force guide him, nudging him down different paths and suggesting turns. He found himself almost wanting to meditate, just so he could immerse himself in the force. Almost.

The force brought him to an office, more spacious and luxurious-seeming by imperial standards to the rest. He grinned and quickly got the vent open, slipping inside. The holoprojector sitting on the desk had a chip in it, and curious, he turned it on, blinking rapidly as fuzzy blue images flashed in front of him. They looked like... schematics? Some were of factories- already built and running, complete with floor plans. Others were of... new ships, prototypes to be made and tested, some of them at the factories on the disk.

Ezra was about to turn the holoprojector off and copy the info onto his own disk when two images flashed across the screen. They looked like... prisoners? They had gone by too fast for him to be able to tell. He'd just have to look later. He quickly shut it off and copied the disk, stuffing it into his pocket just as the door started to open.

 _Shit!_ Ezra cussed mentally, shoving the holoprojector back into place and force jumping back up onto the vent. He hadn't gotten the vent cover quite back on when the officer walked in. He recognized him from their entry speech, the head general of their sector. This could be REALLY bad.

As quietly as he could Ezra reattached the vent, wincing when a screw squeaked. Thankfully the general didn't seem to notice and he let out a breath, turning to head back down the vent. That had been too close.  He couldn't be so risky like that again.

The trip back to his room was uneventful, and Ezra was glad. He needed time to open up the info he had gathered so far,  and double check the people he had seen on the disk. He was even more glad to find that Kell had had a class and was not in their room, giving him time to go over what he needed.

He sat on the bed and from his things he fished out the mini holoprojector, sliding the first of his disks into it. It was pretty basic, mostly files and things on the inner workings and contracts of the empire. The second held much of the same and so did the third. The fourth held all of what he had just found, and he flicked through the files till he got what he was looking for.

They were in fact prisoners. Rebels, at that! Skimming their files, he found out that they were still right there at the facility, several processing errors had barred the shipment of prisoners for nearly a full month now. That had to have been the work of another rebel agent. The empire ran on paperwork, and without it the agents were sitting ducks waiting to be rescued.

It was utterly perfect. Now he just needed to figure out what cell, when and how. This was exactly all he needed to give the all clear. The idea of finally getting out was exciting but his heart ached at the thought. He enjoyed these sorts of missions, out on his own and testing his limits. It was great practice, if not a little dangerous.

But he also missed Kanan and the rest. As much fun as it was, he could only handle so much imperial propaganda before he snapped and vomited. Pretending to rub elbows with these idiots was starting to give him a headache.

Ezra rubbed the bridge of his nose and leaned back against the wall, shutting off the holoprojector. He had a few days to make a solid plan. He could work with this.

The door slid open and Kell entered. He looked tired, like he had been made to run laps.

“Hey, jeez, what they do make you run around the-...” Kell was reaching for him. Eyes large and tired but full of emotion, and Ezra felt frozen, startled by the direct move. He stiffened when kells hands found his shoulders, and for a moment Ezra felt like he wanted to pull away- to not let himself break the rules. But... karabast, he looked so inviting... Ezra closed his eyes, practically melting as Kell moved closer.

Kell paused again, breath hot against his lips. “Ezra,” he said softly. His lips were chapped but warm,

Wait.

Kell was kissing him. He was letting Kell kiss him. That was not supposed to be something happening.

Ezra pushed Kell away by his shoulders, gasping sharply. “Kell!” He hissed, and Kell had the decency to look embarrassed, his cheeks flushed and one hand rubbing the back of his neck.

“Sorry, I,” Kell licked his lips, voice cracking.”The class was- and- I'm sorry.” He looked away, downcast. Ezra rolled his eyes, letting out a breath.

“You are an idiot who needs to ask next time-” There was something smugly satisfying about the way Kell’s shoulders hunched at that, “-but I’m not mad at you,” Kell glanced up to him, eyes big and hopeful and Ezra had to roll his eyes again.

“I really am sorry,” he said, voice quiet.

“I know.”  


The next few days went by in a bit of a blur. He'd found several top secret factories that would be crucial to either destroy or take command of, found out the holding cell level (there were several floors) to the two rebel agents he had to rescue, and he may or may not have... well... made out with Kell. A couple times. He couldn't really help it. After Kell had been so upfront with his interest, and Ezra  was only so much better at hiding his o _wn_ interest, it was impossible to not at least... fool around a little. Right? Either way, neither Kanan or Hera was there to tell him otherwise, and he took that reprieve to act his age... like a horny hormonal teenager. That was his excuse, anyway.

Oh, Kanan would be so _pissed_ if he found out. He was lucky Kanan wasn't able to feel his emotions through their Bond so far away. He was sure of he did his master would march right through the front doors and lecture him in front of the entire imperial base about focusing on the mission at hand and not putting priority in what his pants wanted to do.

Ezra mentally shuddered at the thought. Just the idea was scary in of itself. He had to catch himself from wondering out of the right line the adults had them marching in, practicing advanced formations and ques and whatnot. Rex would love to be giving pointers at this point, or better yet be teaching them the _right_ way to do it. That's how he'd put it anyway. He was sure ahsoka would agree with him.

His heart lurched at the thought of them and the ghost crew. It had been a really long time since they had been separated for so long- nearly a month now. He wanted to return with their lost soldiers and invaluable information, and see how proud they were of him. Maybe they'd even promote him. Kanan would be proud, and grin at him in that stupid way.

Ezra hadn't even realized how long he had been thinking of the crew when he got a tap on the shoulder.

“Hey,” it was Kell. “We were just dismissed. Little empty in there?” He asked, voice low, almost a whisper. “Something came up. They all have to go to some last minute meeting so we all have the day off. To do homework anyway,” there was an odd note to his voice, and the pieces all too easily fell into place with the way he was thumbing the hem of his uniform.

Ezra glanced at him, still mildly distracted but not unfocused. “Thinking, Kell.” He said.

“Mm.” Kell responded. He was leaning too close for too long now, and with a quick glance around he shouldered him away. It was just too risky in public. He didn't deny the taller teen however.

Kissing Kell was nice. More than nice, really. In the security of their room Kell was passionate, and yet, so gentle at the same time. Could someone be passionately gentle? Kell seemed to have the answer to that.

Ezra was practically seated in his lap, on the bottom bunk bed, Kell’s fingers kneading the softer curve of his hip, another hand tangled in the hairs at the nape of his neck. He'd let Kell take most of the control of the kiss and while the submissive gesture caused a stab of irritation from his more rebellious side, it was exciting. He'd never really been “submissive” with anybody. Less in a literal sense, he literally did not have the parts for that, and any _substitutes_ would be hard to come by and even harder to explain, he'd always been aggressive and dominating, but with Kell it was different.

Kell had decided that was his job now. It was exhilarating. The way the man’s teeth scraped down the sensitive flesh of his throat, firm but careful to only leave marks where they could be well hidden inside his uniform, was like electricity. His face and throats felt gross and wet with saliva, but this particular activity was not known for being neat or tidy or even really all that hot. To look at, anyway, because right that moment Ezra felt pretty _hot_ and bothered himself.

Without really meaning to Ezra ground down against Kell. This elicited a low chuckle from him. “Impatient?” He murmured, more a statement than a question. Ezra could _hear_ the joke or pun or _whatever it was_ building in kells brain, and he knew it was going to be _insufferable_ so he did the first thing that popped into his mind. Just as Kell went to speak he turned his head, latching their months together. Kell made a startled noise but did not protest, humming contently into his mouth.

Kell’s hand slid down his waist, coming to a stop at his hip. With quickened breath Ezra broke the kiss, meeting Kell’s questioning gaze.

“I've just never done this before,” Ezra said. That was a total lie, but Kell wouldn't know that.

“Hey,” Kells voice was soft, and it made his skin prickle and his hair stand on end. “It's okay. I got a little excited there,” he murmured, and Ezra leaned against the warm hand against his cheek. He felt his eyes flutter as Kell kissed him again, gently, softer this time, more controlled. He had fallen a bit off of his lap, and now Kell was leaning over to kiss him.

Kells lips were moving against his, moving to press against his jawline, and he realized that the other man was speaking. “Hey, I want... I want you to know that I, well I _know_ okay? So is that okay? Can I,” he paused, licking his lips, Ezra could feel the motion against his jaw where Kell seemed content to hide his emotions- and Ezra wasn't much worse off, his heart was beating so hard in his chest he was surprised his entire body wasn't shaking with the force of it. “Can I continue,” Kell finally said, voice harsh and throaty, a hard whisper that had his skin prickling.

Ezra's chest seized. Kell knew? For _how long_ ? It felt like Kell had just pulled the proverbial rug out from under him. “I,” not even Kanan knew. How had _Kell_ figured out?

“Hey, it's okay, we don't have to you know?” Kell said and Ezra huffed, shaking his head “No.” as he turned to kiss him again. He _wanted_ to. He _wanted_ to trust him. But it would be breaking every single rule. Both imperial and rebel. Kell hummed against his lips, and murmured, “Alright, I'll be gentle,”

That line made Ezra choke, breaking the kiss to cover his mouth. He felt lips at his temple and a warm hand on his upper back, and despite _everything_ he felt safe. His eyes felt hot and sharp, and when Kell moved closer his forehead fit perfectly into the crook of his neck. Kells hand was moving again, he hadn't let go of his wrist and wasn't planning to, but he didn't stop him either. When kell touched him, bare, a gasp left him in a hiss, haggard and scratchy like he had had a sore throat for a month.

Kell had an expert hand. Each little movement had a purpose, and each movement brought a fire, a hot burn to his belly that had him seeing white fuzz and stars and blankness all at once. He found himself needy, rolling helplessly down against his hand, clinging to Kell like his life had depended on it.  His fingers found their way inside finally and Ezra came undone, biting kells uniform so hard he was sure it was going to tear. His toes curled, and for a few long moments, his mind was blank, dazedly taking in deep lungfuls of air as Kell pressed kisses all along his jaw, humming against his skin and carefully fixing his uniform, re-zipping and buckling.

Ezra was very aware of the bulge in Kell’s pants but the other man made no move to act on it, instead seeming to more want to smother him in affection than anything.

Kell broke the silence after a few minutes, voice soft, barely a whisper against his neck. “Hey... I didn't push too far did I? I didn't... mean to go so far. I'm sorry if I hurt you.” Ezra found himself shaking his head against his shoulder. “No.” he sighed, a little bonelessly. He had... actually needed that more than he thought. Grant it finding out that Kell knew something so intimate about himself like _that_ had been less than ideal. But Kell hadn't really hurt him. Just startled, more than anything.

Ezra sat up abruptly, startling Kell enough to make him yelp. He glowered at him, and Kell had the decency to look nervous, leaned back on his hands and looking down at him as he slid to kneel on the floor. It was Ezra's turn.

Rather aggressively Ezra took hold of the zipper to Kells pants, and he enjoyed the way Kell swallowed nervously as he said, “ _Here_ , let me return the _favor_.”

* * *

 

Two days later Ezra let Kell fuck him. They'd both been sparring for a little over two hours, and when the class ended they had nearly jumped each other before they were even fully in their room. The sexual tension had built and built and finally snapped, and the sex was rough and unrefined, but Kell had a way of rocking his world that way. Even when out of control, Kell knew what he was doing. All the right ways to move, shift press or touch, Kell seemed to know his body like a well-read map. It made his head spin, and when Kell came it was like fire within him. It hadn't stopped there, and by the end of the night they had gone nearly four rounds before they collapsed exhausted and slept.

Ezra had ended up unbearably sore the next day, which sucked because there was no way to get out of classes besides being sick and this didn't really count. The training missions and arena had usually been his strong point here, but the soreness in his thighs and hips had made him come nearly last. He'd gotten a few odd looks from the teachers, no doubt questioning why one of their star students had done so badly, but at this point he didn't really care. He'd found the exact cell the rebels were being kept. He wouldn't be here but for a few more days.

He'd been utterly reckless with Kell. But something, and he hoped it was the force, told him it was okay. He trusted Kell more than he should, and he was going to ask him to come with him, that was a given. The man compelled him to do wild things, not that he needed encouraging, and at the same time he made him feel... safe.

He was starting to notice things about him, too. Little things. Kell always played with his hair when he was nervous or anxious, he always had to be doing something with his hands, and the target was usually his hair.  The way Kell always broke out In a toothy smile before laughing, or the way his nightly routine counted on using exactly three units from the shampoo dispenser in the wall and putting on his shirt first, never after his pants or anything else. The way he fidgeted with a ring Ezra didn't even know he wore whenever a class lecture got particularly boring. That had to be out of uniform. That only really encouraged Ezra to ask him. Kell was so unlike any other of the cadets, and he wondered why he was even there.

He resolved to ask Kell when he asked him to leave with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you fancy yourself to draw some fan art that would be AMAZINGLY appreciated. You can link it to me here or on my tumblr or even my FA if you like.
> 
> Comments are appreciated!! <3
> 
> tumblr- http://owletfluff.tumblr.com/
> 
> FA- https://www.furaffinity.net/user/owletfluff/


	4. Prologue- 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra and co escape from the penitentiary.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you fancy yourself to draw some fan art that would be AMAZINGLY appreciated. You can link it to me here or on my tumblr or even my FA if you like.
> 
> Comments are appreciated!! <3
> 
> tumblr- http://owletfluff.tumblr.com/
> 
> FA- https://www.furaffinity.net/user/owletfluff/

Kell refused to leave. He hadn't seemed mad or even confused that he was breaking out, just sort of sad. “I'd hoped you'd stay a little longer.” He said. He was picking lifelessly at the ring on his finger, not really looking at him.

“I have to,” Ezra heard himself say. He didn't want to stay, but that had sure seemed to say otherwise.

“I know.” Kell sighed. “And I have to stay. Coren-”

“-Ezra, actually,” he blurted, blinking rapidly after he realized what he had just said.

Kell seemed startled but he didn't pause to ask questions. “Ezra, then, I have to stay. I'm looking for what happened to my mother. She was an officer, and I don't know what happened to her. She just disappeared. No one told me where or why. I need to know, Ezra.” There was hurt in his voice that Ezra knew too well.

“I lost my parents to the empire,” he said softly. “So I know why you have to do this. Just- if you need help, or want out, don't hesitate to contact the rebellion. We will help you, alright?” There was an almost urgent note to his voice. He wanted to hear from Kell again. He wanted to see him away from the empire.

It was with that thought that the realization of how much he cared for him slammed into him like a cargo ship. He took a deep breath and reached forwards, tangling his fingers in the front of kells uniform. He paused for a second, unable to meet his eyes. A warm hand came to his cheek and Ezra closed his eyes, leaning into it. He sighed as Kell kissed him, a gentle and emotion-filled action that was heavy with unsaid words.   
  
“I'll see you again.” Kell said softly. “I'll ask for Coren to help me. That's how you'll know it's me, alright?” Kells fingers traced his jaw, passing up and along the curve of his ear and into his hair, combing goosebumps all up and down his spine.

“I'll help best I can to get you and your friends out, Ezra. I can't do much, I have to find what happened to my mom, but it's not forever. You're going to free them tomorrow, right? We have training in those computer training pods. I'll cause an accident. You'll have to do what you need to in that time.” His words were firm, unyielding, leaving Ezra no room to protest his help.   
  
He sighed, feeling heavy. He kissed the corner of Kell’s mouth after a moment and said, “Before the fourth drill I'll be gone. You won't see me again if I'm lucky. Hear about it maybe.” He chuckled and Kell did too, but it felt sad more than anything.

“Be _safe,_ ” he heard Kell say quietly. He could only really nod, breath catching.

* * *

 

Ezra did not sleep. He ended up trying to meditate for most of the night, wiling away a headache that was trying to make itself known. He slipped into the vents of his room before the first alarm rang, moving as quickly as he could with his pack on his back full of what he couldn't afford to leave behind. He knew the path, had gone over it again and again, and the force nudged him along where he couldn't see.

Distantly behind him he heard the first alarm ring for the standard morning routine. He chuckled, glad to be free of it. All of the empires rules, really. They had been suffocating for the month he had been here, he could barely imagine two or worse, years. Ezra had to suppress a shudder at that.

Kell would be up by then. He wasn't really sure if Kell had actually slept, either. He suddenly wished he had asked Kell to sleep in his bed...

No, he couldn't think about that now.

It had just been messing around. He knew that. Time to move on, there was a bigger picture at stake. It was so much easier to say.

Ezra sighed. He was getting close to the right floor now, and distantly he heard stormtroopers marching. They must have been moving someone. He hoped it wasn't his objectives.

Finally, he made it to the right floor. The metal creaked under him as he leaned forwards, peering through the vent to see if any troopers were in the hallway. Ezra grinned when he saw that there were none and used the force to get the grate open, wiggling out of the smaller vent and landing silently.

The countdown started now.

Ezra started to quickly go over the numbers of each holding cell, maintaining a trot as he looked left and right  searching for the right cell.

_There!_

Holding cell 237b. He could sense two life forms in there, good, the stormtroopers had moved someone else.

He was quick to get the lock undone, however he barely managed to get it unlocked and open without tripping some sort of alarm. In truth he had expected to have already done so, but he had gotten lucky so far

The door slid open with a quiet hiss. After a few moments no one came out and he frowned, edging closer to the door. Was it a trap? We're there stormtroopers?  Well, only really one way to find out.

Carefully he stood, slowly stepping through the threshold of the cell, squinting in the dimly lit room.

Before he could react, a large hand shot out from the shadows and fisted in the front of his shirt. Moments later his head was ringing from impact against the wall. He groaned, shaking his head trying to clear his vision, wincing as another hand shoved his shoulder harshly. He kicked his feet, realizing he wasn't even able to touch the ground.   
  
Ezra's vision started to focus just as a low, animalistic growl met his ears. Followed by a low raspy voice that came from the creature whose emerald green eyes leveled him with a harsh glare, practically glowing in the dark shadows. “Imperial dog!” It hissed and a hand-- _another-? --_ grabbed hold of his jaw. “You better give me a good reason not to use you as a blaster shield to get out of here!”

Ezra could only hiss in pain as claws dug into the sensitive flesh of his throat, and he wondered briefly how such a _big_ creature had even managed to hide in the shadows- and where even was the _other_ one?

“ _I'm--_ ” he wheezed as the hand on his throat tightened mercilessly _, “--I'm on your side--!!”_ Christ, she-- Ezra's eyes had adjusted enough to see her a little more clearly. From what he could tell this beast of an alien was a _she_ \- was absolutely huge. He was dangling well over a foot off of the ground and she was still _slouched over_ , and-- _four_ arms? _Really?_ Those green eyes bore into him, angry and sceptical. The hand on his throat mercifully loosened somewhat but his shoulder was shoved roughly against the wall again as she growled, “ _Prove_ _it_!” He could feel the growl of her words in his chest and frankly he was absolutely terrified. What the hell! He was here to _help_ them!

“I _came_ here to get you guys out!” Ezra hissed, wincing as claws tightened, “Fulcrum sent me!” That made her paused, frowning. Fin-like ears flicked back, twitching as if she was an irritated lothcat.

“Kid, you expect me to believe they sent a teenage punk to get me out of here?” She asked and Ezra scowled.

“One, I’m not a kid, and two, _yes they did_ and it's currently working _very well_ right now!” He growled in turn and she stared at him for a long moment before chuckling. Suddenly he was dropped and he yelped as he hit the floor. She stood over him, one pair of arms on her hips. “Imps ain't smart enough to pull something like this. They also don't have the guts to talk like that to me.” She said. She didn't seem any happier now that she had proof but at least she wasn't trying to kill him.

“... well, whatever. We need to go.” Ezra huffed and turned to leave.

“Hey wait kid,” She started.  
  
Ezra scowled, “-not a kid,”

“Uh-huh. Kid, I need my stuff before we get outa here. Keir! You can come out now. Get your shit and let's go.” She shouldered past him just as a teenager maybe 15 years old practically melted from the darkness, shoving past him to follow his friend. Jeez, not like they needed to thank him or anything for saving their lives or something...

Wait, where were they going? Ezra bolted out of the holding cell, groaning as he realized they were headed deeper in. “Hey!” He hissed, “Wrong way!”

“Keir needs his things and I am _not_  leaving my pistols behind!” The woman said, and Ezra couldn't help but think of Sabine. If she was anything like her there really was no use arguing. Huffing, he followed them.

“Name’s Sev, by the way.” The woman said after a moment, glancing down at him. She had to be at least 8 ft tall. That was just... way too tall for any one being.

“This is Keir.” She said after a moment, gesturing to her cellmate. He was on the short side and pretty skinny, holding onto the back of Sev’s orange jumpsuit. For the first time Ezra noticed the metal band around his mouth, keeping him from speaking. It looked like it would need more than to just be broken, which he was sure Sev could do easy. He didn't seem too happy about it, and actually kind of looked miserable.

Sev glanced down at them. “They put that on him about a week ago. Serves him right for running that brat mouth of his when I told him to stop talking.” She said. The other teen scowled at her.  

They turned a corner, finding a storage room that Sev proceeded to practically wreck looking for their things. Ezra decided to keep watch, even though he couldn't all that well do much without his own lightsaber.

After nearly five minutes he was tapped on the shoulder. He turned to see Keir staring at him with bright eyes.

“We have our things let's _go!_ ” Sev said, and she now had on a leather belt, twin gun holsters connected to it and strapped to her thighs, bolstering two twin pistols in a design he had never seen. They were sleek and pale silver, with a glowing orange stripe down the length of them. Not much had changed to Keir’s appearance, besides a tattered jacket and a belt with what looked like a filled weapon holster but he couldn't see what the weapon was, obscured by the jacket.

Ezra rolled his eyes, punching the bridge of his nose for a moment. He had to change plans now that he knew how big one of his companions were. “Hey, are there any charges in there?” He asked. The Keir kid nodded, disappearing back into the room. A moment later he returned with several along with a remote detonator. Ezra grinned. Even if this didn't work it would do some damage.

As it turned out, his plan did work pretty good. It hadn't gone... _perfectly_ , but they had managed to make it to the cargo bay. Grant it, several dozen blaster bolts at any given time were sailing over their heads and colliding with the crates they were hiding behind, but several small shuttles were sitting right there ready for the taking!

Sev had turned out to be an ace shot, firing with the same expertise as Rex with his own twin pistols. Weather Keir had a weapon or not, Ezra didn't know because the kid didn't do all that much besides obediently sitting still behind Sev like she had ordered him to. At least he could take directions.

Sev growled animalistically when one crate next to them toppled over and broke from the blasts. “We need to move!” She hissed. Ezra was about to respond when keir tugged on his sleeve and the side of sevs jumpsuit, pointing to the broken crate. Sev carefully slid over and fully broke the crate. She grinned and looked to them, showing off sharp teeth. “Hey, bet these”play ruin a couple people's days eh?” She said, fishing two handfuls of charges out from the broken box.

Sev threw them over the crates in several powerful throws. Moments later, explosions and a couple screams echoed in the cargo bay. Ezra couldn't help but wince. Sev only chuckled and threw one last one.

The blaster fire had greatly deminished, but Ezra knew it wouldn't be for long. “Let's go!” He said, and edged to the side of the crate before taking off towards the closest shuttle. When he glanced behind him he was pleased to see them following closely. With the diminished fire no one was shot when they got on board.

Sev however didn't seem too keen on letting him fly the ship. “Kid, back off before I break your arm. Don't think I won't.” She said, glaring down at him. Keir nodded as if to say she wasn't bluffing. Ezra held his hands up and huffed. “Fine! Fine. We don't have time for this!” Sev flashed him a grin and plopped down into the pilot's seat, barely able to sit in it. As it was, she was hunched over in the ship.

A blast rocked the ship as Sev started the engines, while Ezra and Keir were nearly knocked off their feet. Sev scoffed through a grin. “Hang on!” She called to them, and the ship surged forwards. The belly of the ship was practically scraping the ground as she flew, crates tumbling and troopers jumping out of their way. A laugh bubbled from Sev’s throat, she said something in a language he didn't know, slamming a fist on the dashboard. Just from the sound of it and the look on Keir’s face it wasn't anything nice. Like, calling a Hutt a smelly slimeball to their face. In Huttese.

He decided he really didn’t want to know.

“What'd ya think Mordecai would say if he heard me say that, eh Keir?” She called to them. The other teen rolled his eyes at her.

The ship was rocked again by blasts but they seemed more distant now. They would be free of the planet's atmosphere soon. TIE fighters weren’t far behind them but they had the advantage of a few minutes head start.

Sev was calculating the hyperspace jump when she spoke, the dark expanse of space suddenly hurtling around them as they broke the surface. “Kid, I got some vital info for the bosses. They had me working on some pretty top secret machines before I got caught. Me’n Keir here.”

To his surprise and somewhat disgust she spit off to the side. “ _Fuckin’_ imperials. I coulda gotten the locations too, if they ever stuck to their goddamn schedules. **_בן מטומטם זונות מחורבנות”_ ** She spoke again in yet another language, and Ezra once again knew it was foul.   
  
It kind of surprised him they had put the band on Keir and not Sev. She had quite a mouth on her. Then again, as he imagined a trooper shakily trying to put it on the angry beast that was Sev, glaring angry, angry holes into the trooper’s brain and promising a whole world of hurt, he knew why they hadn't.

Finally the ship lurched into hyperspace and Ezra was hit with a sudden and incredible amount of homesickness. He couldn't wait to see his team again, his family. He was finally heading home.

* * *

 

Several hours later Chopper base was looming in front of the ship, stars no longer streaking past. Sev had fallen asleep rather quickly at the wheel, leaned back in the pilot seat, the base threatening to break with the angle. Ezra would have bet money that it would have broken. Apparently he would have lost the bet.

As the ship lurched into still space Sev woke, stretching with a wide yawn before rocking forwards on the chair and standing. She seemed to forget the size of the ship however, hitting her head on the ceiling. “ _Fuck!”_ She hissed.   
  
Keir stood from his seat twice as quickly as she had, a spark of something in his eye as he gave Sev a double thumbs up. Even with the band covering the lower half his face, Ezra knew the other teen had to be grinning.

Sev scowled at him, a low growl in her throat. “You want me to tell mordecai that _word_ you said to the imp?”   
  
The teen rocked on his heels, animatedly glancing between her and the exit port. Keir arched an eyebrow and leaned closer towards it. Almost as if to say, 'Let’s see who can get to Mordecai first.'

“Who here has longer legs here huh? _And_ you have to go to med bay first.” Sev said, grinning ferally. The ship shuddered, finally landing on the surface. Ezra rolled his eyes and stood, stretching stiff muscles as he left them to bicker. He was sure medbay was going to have a time with the two of them.

It was good to be home. It was odd to consider the rebel base home, but it was, just as much as the Ghost. He wasn't really looking forwards to his own checkup though, he knew the medics weren't going to let him sneak out of that, not after being away for nearly a month. It was large, so he hoped he wouldn't be near the disaster that was sure to happen with the other two. He wasn't even sure if Sev could stand fully upright in the medbay, now that he thought about it.

Ezra sighed, hearing Sev’s angry voice coming closer. Well, time to get that checkup over with. He could go find Kanan later.

* * *

 

His checkup hadn't taken long. He had managed to leave just as Sev started to sound extremely impatient and more than a little pissed. He had gone to ahsoka next, giving her the data chips that he had and a short debrief before he was waved away. She had told him to go rest and eat a hot meal, but he wanted to see the crew first.

It didn't take long to find Kanan. It was a little surprising, usually Kanan was off in some odd spot meditating lately when he wasn't needed. What was more surprising was that he was talking rather animatedly for himself to someone. He could feel enthusiastic energy coming off of him in waves through their bond. What was going on? Who was he talking to?

As Ezra got closer he could see the man Kanan was talking to. Well, his back anyway. He had mottled lavender and white wings, folded neatly behind his back. He was extremely tall and thin, yet was broad shouldered. He had a commanding aura about him, calm but elegant in the force. For some reason Ezra had a feeling it had to do with whatever species he was.

Kanan almost looked like a Padawan talking to him, and it seriously disturbed Ezra. He wasn't used to seeing Kanan act so... obedient. He could tell he was being as polite as he could, which really wasn't like him. Kanan was always so full of snark. This Kanan wasn't.

“ _Hey_ ,” Sev’s voice suddenly cut through his thoughts right behind him and he jumped, the only thing keeping him from jerking around to face her a heavy hand on his shoulder. “Let's see if I can break his composure eh?” She grinned and picked up a small rock, tossing it in the air a few times before throwing it.

 _What was she thinking?_ Ezra thought, startled. He went to call out but a hand came over his mouth, preventing him from speaking.

Just as he was sure the rock was going to beam the taller man in the head, it halted suddenly, inches from impact.

Ezra looked to Kanan, now even more startled, but he didn't even seem to notice. So- if it wasn't Kanan, it was-

The taller man turned, expression neutral save for the eyebrow he raised in their direction. Sev released him, now pouting. “What? I wanted to see if you were paying attention.” She said, crossing one pair of arms.

“I was.” He said simply.

“Ezra!” Kanan said, as if noticing him for the first time. He took that as a que to walk forward. Kanan jogged to meet him halfway and grab him in a large bear hug, lifting him off of the ground for a good few seconds before setting him down again. “The crew and I missed you. How was the mission? I-” He coughed suddenly, taking him by the shoulders and spinning them around to look at the other man, who had been observing them with a calm but somewhat amused expression.

“I-” Another cough, “-this is my padawan Ezra.” He said finally, hands firmly on his shoulders.

“Padawan, Caleb?” The other said, seeming amused. Caleb??? What was going on?

“Yes, Master.” Kanan sounded... proud. Ezra felt his face warm at the thought. At the same time he felt confused over this other man being called Master. It was obvious he was strong in the force, yes, but _Master?_ The same as the man, Obi-Wan, from the holocron?   
  
The sound of boots pounding down the hall brought Ezra out of his thoughts just in time to watch Keir dart under Sev's arms. The teen stumbled, redirected his momentum and lunged at the older man. To the stranger's credit, despite the force at which the teen flung himself, he merely staggered. Keir clung to the man's cloak, taking fist fulls of fabric. The medics must have been able to remove the band. Immediately he started chattering.   
  
Keir’s voice was raw and scratchy from a week of neglect. Ezra cringed as soon as he heard the accent. He spoke with a cacophony of different dialects Ezra could only describe as something Aristocrats from the Core assumed poor children in the Outer Rim sounded like. Straight out of a soap opera. It was _that_ bad.   
  
He almost wished the medics _hadn’t_ removed it. 

“ _Calm,_ Keir.” The man soothed, placing his hands on the boys’ shoulders and easing him away, kneeling on one knee in front of him. “It is good to have you two back.”

“I _almost_ missed you Mordecai.” Sev said, moving to stand next to him. Mordecai glanced up to her with a small smile before returning his attention to Keir.

“More than a kornesh ‘oar eighty yards from Sunday!” The teen rasped, grinning. At least, that's what Ezra thought he said. He couldn't be sure.

“Hush now. Did they not give you water?” Mordecai frowned, reaching up to brush a stray hair out of the boy’s face. “Come, show me your lightsabre. Let's make sure they didn't break it.”

“Woah,” Kanan murmured in his ear, “He sounds- not monotone,” he whispered, “That was _not_ his teaching style.”   
  
Keir nodded, seeming to focus. He withdrew the lightsaber from his jacket and shifted into a stance that put his company at a safe distance. The blade ignited true and blue. 

“Very good.” Mordecai hummed, and when Keir extinguished the blade he stood, taking a gentle hold of the boy’s shoulders and turning him to face them. “I'm sure Ezra got to know him already, but this is my Padawan Keir.” His voice was soft and affectionate, gentle eyes downcast to his student.

Kanan respectfully bowed his head in acknowledgement. “Padawan Keir,” he said.

Keir in turn grinned and opened his mouth, about to speak when Mordecai’s hand came over his mouth, firm but gentle. Ezra couldn't help but be thankful.

“Sev, Aurel has missed you deeply. I am sure you feel the same. He nearly ate the core of the ship coming here, actually. You know how he gets when he has anxiety. Don't keep him waiting much longer, else this whole planet be in jeopardy.” Mordecai spoke to Sev now, whose face had visibly softened at the sound of this “Aurel’s” name. She nodded and passed them by, pausing to place a hand on Mordecai’s shoulder and squeezing gently before releasing it and continuing on, tail flicking Keir’s side as she went.

“It was good to see you, Knight Caleb.” Mordecai started, and Ezra could feel his master practically beaming behind him, never mind the force- it was practically overflowing. “But we must go. Our place is elsewhere in the galaxy. May the force be with you, Caleb.” Mordecai said, and turned to leave, a guiding hand on Keir’s shoulder.

“Master,” Kanan murmured. For a minute they stood there, watching until the two other Jedi were out of sight. Ezra both heard and felt Kanan take a deep breath, and prepared for some sort of talk, but he let out a startled huff instead when Kanan arm looped under his and around his chest, lifting him off of the ground and ruffling his hair with his free hand as he let out a breathless sort of laugh.

“Kanan!” Ezra said in a sort of half laugh, unable to help Kanan’s infectious mood.

“I thought he was dead,” Kanan said, but Ezra could hear the smile in his voice.

“He was a good teacher. Strict and a bit boring at times, perhaps, but those who were his padawans grew to do great things. _That_ Mordecai was very different than the one I remember though. He seemed- happier.”

“That's great and all Kanan but... can you put me down?”

“What? Oh- yes! Sorry about that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand that's it for the prologue guys! Tell me what you think, comments are highly motivational!
> 
> Sev and co are special guest appearances from me and my betas own universe. Did you guys like them? Would you want to see them again later in the plot? 
> 
> Here's some art of them- I dont have any of Keir sorry!


	5. I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra returns home. A long wait ensues.

The moment Ezra walked through the door, Sabine slung an arm over his shoulder. "Welcome back," She said, messing up his hair with her free hand. He couldn't resist smiling back. Man, it was good to be back. "Heard the mission was a success! I know Zeb can't wait to hear about it. It's been pretty dull around here," 

"Kriffing right it's been dull," Speak of the devil. There Zeb was, arms crossed leaning against the door, smirk and all. "I almost missed ya," 

"Zeb!" Ezra exclaimed. "Ha, well I know I didn't miss  _ you _ ," Zeb let out a boisterous guffaw and slapped him so hard on the back he stumbled forward. 

As he regained his balance he nearly tripped over Chopper. The astrodroid peeped and warbled loudly, wheeling around the trio as if to say,  _ “What took you so karking long?”  _  To emphasize his point, he rolled over Ezra’s foot.

“I missed you too, buddy,”

“So,” Sabine began as they made their way down the hall. “What kind of trouble did you get up to?” 

“Oh you know, the usual,” He shrugged, grinning. “Snuck into our Instructor’s office, discovered fraud, set prisoners free, standard stuff,”

“Oh if that's all,” Zeb rolled his eyes. Sabine gave him a curious look at the use of the word ‘our’ but didn't comment. 

Ezra found Hera and Kanan in the common room a few minutes later, animatedly engaged in a conversation he couldn’t quite hear. Kanan’s force signature was practically aglow with pride, affection and awe. Hera seemed pleased overall, whether it was Kanan’s good mood or whatever they were talking about he couldn't be sure. As soon as he stepped forward she greeted him with a warm smile. 

“Good to have you back,” She said. “Without you, we wouldn't have been able to rescue those agents. Rex has informed us it'll take a few weeks to confirm everything we found though. For now it's a waiting game.”

“We’re proud of you, Ezra,” She and Kanan exchanged a smile. 

Ezra felt his face flush, accompanied by a warm fuzzy feeling. He stuttered and mumbled something like, _ “It wasn't anything special, really,” _

“Nonsense, what you've accomplished is very difficult to pull off. You did great,” Kanan insisted. Pride and affection flowed across their bond, at a loss for words Ezra returned the emotions with his own. It was good to be home.

Hera gave him a knowing look. “He had kittens by the litter the first week you were gone. Couldn't stop checking the comms every few clicks,” 

“I wasn't  _ that _ bad,” 

Hera chuckled, “Oh, sure.” She leaned in, stage whispering. “I'll have you know I found him meditating at 4am. No less than four times,”

“Hey now,” Kanan frowned, exasperation and fondness both present in his voice and leaking through the force. 

A few minutes later, Hera decided it was time to shoo him off to recover from his mission. Dinner would be ready in a few hours she told him, Kanan had finally decided to cook a recipe from his homeworld. After weeks of cafeteria food he couldn't wait. And for once they weren't having freeze dried!   
  
The moment he stepped through the threshold to his quarters, the exhaustion from the last twentyfour hours finally hit him. Every muscle in his body ached, he felt grimy and gross. He didn't have the energy to make all the way to the ‘fresher so he aimed for his cott instead. Planting face first into the worn, fabricated cloth of his pillow. It didn't take long for him to surrender to the beckoning of sleep.    
  
The next morning, Ezra faintly recalled waking up from a nap for dinner the night before, but his sluggish mind rendered it a blurr. Thankfully he felt much better after a few more hours of sleep, and the day that followed was welcoming and familiar. It was exactly the day he had expected, the usual routine and usual mid-morning banter, protocol and chores- though hera made him skip the chores- and it was in every way better than the imp routines. In a way he missed the level of activity that had constantly been around him, but the more quiet routine of the Ghost was good.

The days started to blur by. He let himself loose himself to the training and routine, they were not clear for missions, not while waiting on the recovered info. Ahsoka had already planned for them to be the ones to take the next mission, and she didn't want to take risks with them, which must have meant it was pretty big.

Ezra didn't mind all that much, he had become rusty with his lightsabre- he used the passing weeks to brush up on his skills.

He retrained with Kanan, went through the forms with surprising clarity and focus, had target practice with Sabine and mock fights, blaster practice with Rex- it was almost like old times again, if it could even be called that. But something was making him uneasy about the whole thing. It felt, with the upcoming mission, like they were in the quiet before the storm. What unsettled him even more was that the force told him it this feeling wasn't all nerves. Something big  _ was _ about to happen. It refused to tell him any more than that, though. That's what he hated about the force, it only ever told him bits and pieces.

Weeks passed and not a word from Ahsoka, they were only ever told to be patient. Even Kanan was getting antsy. But they did as told and waited- it only ever meant with training they would be even more ready to tackle this mission.

It was driving him absolutely nuts.

Before he knew it a month had passed. He had just gone to Ashoka only for her to hold her hand up and shake her head with a frown. He had scowled then and huffed, feeling more irritated than usual and marched off. Was it really so hard to give them an update? They hadn't heard a single thing since she told them to wait! He had tried to get something out of Rex, but Rex wouldn't budge either. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter i know :( i have more written but we dont want to release much more until we get this one section finished! But i thought an update was in order. So, short chapter! <3.


	6. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra and Sabine get up to shenanigans. Chopper gets sassy.

The shuttle disappeared over the horizon, the lights from the propulsion fading into distant but brilliant stars. Were it not for the flickering he wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. Ezra crossed his arms, glowering at the crates the shuttle had left behind. It was late evening, 

the sun had set and this was his last task for the day.     
  
The crates weren’t all that heavy, he could easily move them with the force, but it was tedious! It was hard not to be frustrated and bitter by the fact he was left grounded, while others around him left the stratosphere.  **_“You’re jealous,”_ ** Kanan commented through the bond.  **_“Take a deep breath. Patience. We will get our chance.”_ ** ****__  
****__  
Ezra went through the motions but felt unsatisfied. Growing gradually more irritated, he turned that focus inward, tried to release it into the force and starting moving crates.    
  
A grand total of four were moved across the room when the door to the hanger opened and Sabine waltzed in, Chopper whistling loudly behind her.     
  
“Hey,” She greeted, one hand on her hip and the other holding something suspiciously behind her back. Chopper did his best to mimic the pose.    


Ezra looked at her, giving her an unimpressed once-over as he crossed his arms. She had that look about her she got when she wanted to get in trouble. “Hey.”   


“Doesn't the base seem to be getting a bit... grey to you,” She asked, looking for all the world like the cat who knew they were about to catch the canary.

Ezra felt himself let out a small breath, fighting a small grin. So  _ that _ was her scheme. Well, it was better than hauling crates. “It's always been this dull, Sabine. Did you  _ just _ notice? You put your artistic eye to shame,”

Sabine shrugged smiling broadly. "It's killing me inside. About time I did something about it,"    
  
Chopper warbled menacingly. Banishing two buckets of paint, one a neon orange and in the other a hypnotic blue. He dropped both, barely missing Ezra's toe.    
  
They waited  _ almost _ half an hour to meet up in a janitor's closet. Then they sorted through a collection of paint cans and brushes Sabine had collected over the years. She explained her plan to him and Ezra had to admit he hadn't been expecting it. Moral was low for a number of troops, the crew of the Ghost included. As Sabine put it,  _ "These monochrome shades can't be doing much to improve it,"  _ A few days ago she had gathered a few tickets and made a list of personal artifacts to take inspiration. The idea was to make the common quarters feel more like home to the crew. Remind them of something worth protecting.

He would have expected her to want to do something a little more.. explosive. Something bright and fun and erratic. He would have been fine just doing that, but he found himself really liking the idea she had presented to him. Maybe that was what he needed, too. His mood had been changing so erratically lately, maybe it was a combination of their drab serious surroundings and the idleness of being grounded.

There were few sections of Chopper Base that were completely deserted at any given time, and with no true curfew they had to be careful. This practice in stealth was strangely refreshing, exhilarating even he thought as they rounded the corner. Crouched low to the ground as if they were sneaking through some imperial HQ. Sabine peered around the corner, than waved him forward as she slowly stood. They were hitting the west wing mess hall and rec center first, the least active out of their targets in the evening.

The mess hall and rec center were in the same building separated by a makeshift wall of supply crates and spare panels. Sometime ago one of the troops had tried to convert the space into a reading nook, however due to limited resources they needed else where they couldn't do much with it.  This unsightly mass of rubbish had been an  eyesore ever since.  _ That _ was about to change.   
  
Sabine got to work, laying out a thick plastic sheet over the floor and nearby tables while Ezra started peeling open cans of paint. Chopper snatched the first two buckets, whistling a remark that got a snort out of Sabine. Ezra struggled to keep his own from escaping.    
  
They started with the barest wall first, at the juncture where the rec room meet the kitchen and worked outwards, replacing hues of greys with warm browns and light blues.  Out in the hallway, Chopper busied himself with smearing hypnotic blue up and down the wall.    
  
“ I saw Bail's ship this afternoon .” Sabline commented, finishing her section of the wall with an upward stroke.  "I didn't see the old man himself, but the ship isn't there now."   
  
Ezra felt hopeful for the first time in months. Organa rarely visited in person unless it crazy important or involved something going on in the Core. Both thoughts were equally exciting and foreboding. It seemed unlikely to him that Organa would come all this way just to leave an hour later. Yeah. The more he mulled it over it just felt right to assume Organa was still here. Sabine seemed to agree.     
  
The conversation drifted to speculation and before he knew it they were finished with the west wall. Painting this way was strangely meditative. Ezra wondered idly if mhe could convince Kanan to adopt it in their training sessions.   
  
Moving on to the paint the rec center, he found himself reminiscing about his previous mission. In their down time the cadets had a lot more available. He hadn’t realized he had said  anything about Kell until Sabine raised a brow and asked him. “Who is this, ‘he’ you keep mentioning?”     
  


Ezra automatically felt his face flush at the question and his own slip-up. Shoot. He shouldn't have said anything about that. “Just- some Cadet that was at the academy.”

“Just some _Cadet,_ huh,” She was not buying it. “Think we could have a potential ally among the Imps?”

“No- I mean, yeah maybe,” 

“ _ So, _ what's his name? Should we be expecting a call?” 

“Hey! It wasn't like that,” His skin, all the way down to the back of his neck felt like it was on fire. And of course Sabine was giving him  _ that _ look. “Okay, so maybe it totally like that,”

“Yeah?” She was grinning, but it fell slightly after a beat. “You were careful though, right?” 

“W- well yeah,” he huffed. It was somewhat a lie- but Sabine wasn't force sensitive, she couldn't see that. “Besides- what does that have to do with anything?” He asked, now irritated. He brought his brush down in an angry, irritated stroke on the wall. Almost treating it like a lightsabre. They  _ had _ been careful. It was a safe day, and he was pretty sure Kell had, well, finished mostly outside. He didn't know what she was worried about. It wasn't her right to question anyway, she wasn't his keeper. He didn't need her being a mother hen. He'd been utterly unsafe many times before with various other men and that had never made a difference. He was pretty sure his bits didn't function enough for that, even if it did decide to grace him with its monthly present, that at often times itself was prone to being irregular.

Back on lothal he had had a pretty bad scare one time over a period three-months late. Now he knew better, of course, with his own body. These irregular points were just part of his body's natural rhythm. He was two months late, actually, but at this time of year it was usually the norm. He only ever welcomed it, really.

So, long story short Sabine didn't need to worry. She really didn't. That was time and emotion not worth sparing towards something that was so unlikely to happen. And with that, it was kind of insulting if not begrudgingly true.

Sabine hummed in response, thankfully she let the subject drop. With new found energy Ezra finished his section of the wall in record time. While Sabine brought out a new color, adding finer details to the scene they had created he took a step back, brooding over a mental repeat of their conversation.    
  
A bucket fell, sounding a loud clatter echoing down the corridor. When Ezra turned towards the noise, leaning backward to peer out into the hall, he found Chopper had thrown the bucket with neon orange paint. The bucket had collided with the far wall, ricochet off a low hanging light, and finally settled having spilled its contents all over the open door to some poor soul's room. The astrodroid seemed to be having the time of his life.

Sabine whistled, following his line of sight. “ _ That's _ sure to draw attention. We better get moving.”

Ezra nodded, staring a moment longer as Chopper spun his arms and beeped in triumph. After he picked up a couple of buckets and brushes, following Sabine as she walked briskly towards their next destination.

They were halfway there when a wave of dizziness washed over him. For a full minute the world around him tipped sideways. His stomach gave a lurch and he was forced to his knees, gagging, the bitter taste of bile swimming in his throat. It took several more minutes of wheezing through his nose before the feeling subsided.   
  
As his senses came back to him, Ezra found Sabine and Chopper at his side. Sabine was rubbing his back. “You alright now?” She whispered. Had he not felt so exhausted he would have snapped at her  _ “I’m fine!”  _ Instead he said, “I don’t know,”    
  
She frowned. “Can you stand?”    
  
He shook his head.   
  
With a nod she sat down beside him.    
  
Chopper gave a agitated whistle and positioned himself a few feet ahead of them, lens directed down the hall. 

After a beat, once his mouth started tasting like paste Ezra finally managed to scrape his voice off the floor. “I don’t know what happened. I’m not sick, we just got checked out by the droids last week,”   
  
“If you were sick, Hera would have already served your ass on a platter. You should've seen her the last time Kanan caught something. She had him bound to the bed for a week.” Sabine said.   
  
Ezra huffed. “I bet it’s a force thing. It’s always a force thing.”

“Must be one doozy of a force thing.” Sabine rolled her eyes and leaned back, holding her arms behind her head. “Think you’ll talk to Kanan about it?”    
  
Though she probably didn't realize it, the way she said it, gave him the thought that she was asking two entirely different questions at the same time. He thought about to the week before his mission to the imperial academy and grimaced. She was right, he knew needed to talk to Kanan about it at some point. Wait- No. It wasn't so much of a  _ need _ , as something he  _ wanted _ to do. He could go the rest of his life without mentioning it to anyone else and he’d be fine, but he wanted to share this part of his past with Kanan. He deserved to know. 

Hera did too. 

After losing his parents, and truly knowing what happened, they had truly become his family. His parents would still be his parents, they always would be, but Kanan and Hera were as close to his parents as they could be. He was sure Sabine felt the same way.   
  


At just that moment, Chopper whistled, a sharp shrill noise emitting from his wheels as he spun around the corner.    
  
“Ah, there you are,”

At the sound of the gruff voice Sabine’s head swiveled to look over her shoulder and she audibly uttered,  _ “Well shit.” _   
  
In unison they shot to their feet to face Rex. He let the moment of surprise sink, hands clasped behind his back as he took in the sight of open paint buckets, plastic tarps and brushes scattered around their feet. The air about him spoke of his experience as a general, familiar and warm to them however rough around the edges. The veteran wasn’t always this stern. The spark in his eye told Ezra he was amused but in contrast the somber expression he wore indicated he wasn’t otherwise impressed.  

“You two been keeping yourselves productive I see,” 

“Well-” Ezra started to say. If they could just explain-

“Yep, caught us red handed,” And to his horror he saw that indeed, Sabine’s palm was coated red. 

Rex shook his head, a hidden smile tugging at his lips. “Whatever you got to say for yourselves, save it. Ahsoka wants to see you,”

Hope ignited in his chest. It almost seemed too good to be true, where they finally-- “You mean-?” He choked out, unable to keep the excitement out of his voice.

The veteran nodded. “Your mission briefing is underway,” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not too satisfied with this chapter but here. The hardest bits are always the parts between all the good ones! Were getting to the plot stuff soon... i hope! Deviantcandle helped a LOT with this chapter <3


	7. III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An Objective is given, Chopper is still sassy, and the Mission is off to a rocky start.

As Rex escorted them to command central Ezra’s anticipation grew with each step. By the time they got there he could hardly stand still. The two officers stationed on either side of the door saluted the veteran’s approach far too slowly, stepping aside as the doors crawled open. He could barely restrain himself from charging through.

Waiting for them in the circular chamber stood Ahsoka. She was leaning over a circular display podium in the center of the room, several data-chips and disks about her. The invis-steel along the ceiling had been dimmed, along with the soft cyan blue lighting from various consoles created a cool atmosphere. Bail Organa stood to her left, a bundle of files under his arm. Across from him Kanan and Hera, each listening closely to the audio of a small device Ezra couldn’t quite see.  

Hera gave them a look as they entered, noting the pink paint splattering his boots. Ezra rubbed the back of his neck while Sabine remained ever smug.

Chopper rolled past them to station himself by Zeb’s side.

"Thanks for tracking them down, Rex," Ahsoka said, fondness twinkling in her eye. It didn’t last long, when she continued her voice sobered. "Now that we're all here, I'll get right to it."

"It took us a few days to discuss the severity of the situation, but now that we finally have, I believe you need to hear what our agents found almost a month ago." Ahsoka pulled out a holodisk and activated it on the podium, specs and blueprints lighting up before them.

"According to the information Sev got us, this is a experimental Tie Fighter called the S.F 8 Phantasm. The S.F 8 Phantasm has heavy plating, standard dual engines, advanced weaponry and pilot safety measures.... but more disturbingly, if we are right, it may have cloaking capabilities."  

"Cloaking capabilities?" Kanan repeated, frowning.

"Yes. Complete invisibility."

"From what we understand, they are ready for a test launch," Rex added. "Within the week."

"If that test is successful, the Tie could be green lighted for mass production," Bail continued. "Without the ability to track these things we'll be at a severe disadvantage. We absolutely cannot allow this launch to be successful."

Zeb crossed his arms. "And lemme guess, you want us to make sure it doesn't get off the ground,"

Ahsoka nodded. "Exactly. Unfortunately our forces are strained at the moment. Fortunately though, the Ghost has a good track recorded for risky missions." She flashed them a grin.

Ezra and Kanan couldn't help but smile back. "We do have that charm, don't we,"

"Glad you agree. You'll leave immediately." She knelled to hand Chopper a data-chip. “Keep this safe. It’s imperative you reach your destination as quickly as possible.”

Rex growled under his breath. “We’re all on edge. Ideally we shouldn’t have had to wait so long,”  

The debriefing went by quickly after that.

Their destination was pretty far. Far enough for them to have to stop at the halfway mark and refuel. The jumps were going to be long, tedious and numerous, especially considering they had to jump around many monitored areas of space that would have otherwise streamlined them to their destination. It was going to take them a few days to get there, barring they didn't run into any complications.

It was going to give them all a _long_ time to think, and Ezra had a _lot_ to think about.

About what had happened. And what Sabine had said. He couldn't... stop thinking about it. The more he thought the more it scared him. What if he... was? He didn't want to think about it.

  
He tried to shake the thought from his mind. He was finally getting off Chopper Base, _finally_ riding the Ghost off world again. He rather be on the move, evading bucketheads, imps and the occasional cruiser and _maybe_ worrying about it, than trapped here _definitely_ worrying it.  
  
At least out there he would have something more pressing to think about.   

* * *

 

“Finally!” Sabine shouted, throwing her fists up to the sky.

Kanan briskly followed along behind her, using longer strides than necessary to cover the distance. Despite his excellent sense of direction and use of the force, Hera matched his pace to watch his footing. It rarely seemed to be an issue nowadays but the habit was hard pressed to leave.

Chopper felt just as eager to fly in the Ghost again. The astrodroid shot up the ramp ahead of them, pushing Zeb aside with a hearty warble.

"Hey, watch it!" The Lasat growled. He rubbed the back of his neck, grumbling under his breath the rest of the way.  
  
Hera took her seat at the helm, Kanan placed one hand on the back of the co-pilot's chair to reorient himself. Sabine claimed co-pilot while Zeb and Ezra wrestled over who got to sit behind her. Kanan of course would take the seat behind Hera. It was pretty much off limits. In the end Ezra’s victory was stolen out from under him by the Lasat’s upper arm strength. It was wholly unfair but the atmosphere was uplifting and he couldn't find it in himself to be all that bothered.    
  
“The Ghost is ready to launch,” Hera said into her commlink.  
  
“Roger,” The comm crackled. “Ghost, you are clear for take off. Good Luck out there,”  
  
“Copy that,”

Hera activated the thrusters. The Ghost rumbled to life, familiar hum vibrating under Ezra’s feet and through his bones. Beyond the cockpit, the clay colored surface of Atollon fell beneath them. The Ghost turned her nose skyward and launched herself into the stars.

* * *

 

Nearly 24 hours later found them nowhere closer to their intended destination. A surprise ambush (though most all ambushes _were_ surprises) from imperial forces had forced them into a long, random jump that had utterly emptied their fuel tanks. Luckily they managed to make it into a system with compatible fuel and supplies, but they were forced to stay another full day to get through customs in and then back out. Goddamn imperials!

The planet was, at least, lacking in empiric government. They could deal with hutt space. The hutts did not deal with every single ship that came in and out of their space, most all of them were some scum or another. They wouldn't notice another old ship in among the rest.

But this gave Ezra... time. Time to think. And time to sneak out. And get items with his own personal credits. It also gave him time to lock himself in the bathroom and sit on the floor for half an hour head in his hands and _worry._

It all gave him a chance to _really_ find out and he really _didn't want to do that._

Wearily he looked up to the metal counter, staring at the now half empty lukewarm bottle of water and the small flimsi box next to it. There were several, actually, in a small bag on the floor next to him that he was absolutely unwilling to touch. He knew he had to eventually, he had to be sure even if the first test elevates his worries. There was just... no way this could happen.

Slowly, Ezra sat upright and reached for the small plastic stick sitting on top of the box, grimacing at how bad his hands were shaking. When his fingers finally touched the test he closed his eyes and bit his lip, holding his breath. He picked it up and swallowed, slowly opening his eyes to look down at the test.

It was--

Was-

_Positive._

It felt like he had been punched in the stomach. He choked, dropping the test and scrambling over to the toilet where he proceeded to empty his stomach, eyes stinging and vision blurring. When it felt like he was done he sat back on his heels, scrubbing at his eyes. Okay, so-- false positive, right? He scrambled to take the other tests, doing the rest all at once and setting them out on the counter and waited.

It wasn't a false positive. Only one out of the nine he had bought had said negative, and after rereading the directions he had realized he had done it wrong. For whatever reason he had decided to crawl into the shower cell and press his face to his knees.

Two hours later Sabine found him in exactly the same position, the first one back to the ship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *gives the season 3 finale a blackeye  
> *with a pike


	8. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sabine and Ezra are ghosted from the Ghost.

"What do you want to do?" Sabine's voice was soft and he could feel her breath warm against his shoulder. When she had found him in here she had slowly sat next to the shower stall, but as time went on she had somehow gotten her way into the small space next to him and put an arm around his shoulders. At this point, he couldn't lie to her, and each question she asked he answered truthfully. He shrugged his shoulders slightly to this question, staring at the floor over his knees.

"Whatever you decide to do, Ezra, I'm here. We all are. You are not alone, don't forget that."  Sabine sucked in a deep breath, giving his shoulder a squeeze. “Hey, you remember Niven 3?”

Ezra shifted slightly, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. After a moment he sighed softly and shrugged. “Hard to forget.”

Sabine immediately dove into an enthusiastic but subdued story of that mission, but not once did she move away or release him. By the time she was done she had managed to make him smile just a little. She grinned and punched him in the arm lightly.

“I’m serious, Ezra,” She said, when the sound of approaching footsteps signaling the rest of the crew was back met their ears, “When we get back I’m dragging you to the medical bay, and you’re telling Kanan. Fate has decided to play your hand! Really though, don’t worry. We all love you, Ezra and _none_ of that changes anything.”

* * *

 

The Ghost arrived late. Twelve hours and thirty four minutes after the scheduled launch date to be precise. At first, the system seemed clear. The thought on the crew’s mind had been, ‘Maybe the launch was delayed?’ Kanan shook his head, sceptical, in agreement with Hera they proceed with caution, keeping their distance to the three moons orbiting the gas giant, Japluthea.

At a glance, on both the Ghost’s radar and visually, the imps had done a decent job at covering their tracks, but experienced in such endeavors Hera knew what to look for. _That_ , was when the mission started going south.

Gas Giants had a long history of being notoriously unpredictable. Flying closely, especially to one with rings was difficult, but made great cover for a ship aiming to stay out of the limelight. Truly, a standard procedure for anyone aiming for stealth.

Unfortunately this went both ways.  

“When did the imps start thinking!?” Zeb snarled. The sound of his voice was drowned out by the blast, rocketing the ship sideways.   
  
“We’re not going to make it out of the system!” Hera warned, her teeth bared as she forced the Ghost into a tight U-turn. “Brace yourselves, this landing is gonna be rough!” Beside her, Kanan uttered a curse that would have stunned Ezra into silence had he heard it clearly.   
  
Warning lights were blaring loudly in his ears by the time the surface of a lush moon slowly rose above the dashboard. He couldn’t recall who ordered the evacuation or who abandoned ship first but Ezra did remember, vividly long after, the look in Kanan’s eyes as he shoved him into the escape pod with Sabine. Ezra barely remembered anything that happened the seconds that ticked by afterward.  

* * *

 

The escape pad rattled violently as the impending impact drew closer. Ezra clung tightly to the arms of his chair, his fists ghostly white and breath shallow. The pod gave another lurch, tossing him clear out of the chair as easily if he were a paper doll. Ezra saw white, felt a deafening hammer of pain shot through his skull at the same time he registered a grunt, followed by a heavy shove crashing into his shoulder.   
  
The pad gave one last heave, jostling him backward. Ezra blacked out long enough to miss the final impact but he sure kriffing felt it when he was pulled back to reality by blaring red lights.

The ringing of a siren filled his ears. His cheek ached from where it had been smashed to the windshield. Next to him Sabine fared worse. Her left arm caught at an awkward angle in the arm of the pilot’s chair, while the rest of her was trapped between it and the dashboard.   
  
Every inch of his body arched, his muscles responded sluggishly and his head felt like cotton. Drawing on every ounce of strength he could from the force he struggled to reach her. “Sabine!”   
  
She struggled as he did, hissing sharply when she tried to untangle her arm. “Still kickin’,” She slurred, half croaking.

Less carefully than he should have Ezra crawled over to her, feeling the glass of the windshield  tremble beneath his feet. It shouldn't have creaked. The Ghost and every part of her was sturdy, durable. Logically he knew that the weakest part of any vessel would be any part of it made of glass. Yet somehow, seeing the spider web fracture, hearing the crinkle of shattered glass under his feet added a whole new layer of... what, shock? Betrayal? Helplessness? He couldn't identify it. The feeling ripped something in his chest, made it hard to breath. 

“Ezra!” At Sabine’s urgent tone, his gaze jerked upward from his feet to meet her eyes. “Look at me, we _will_ make it through this.” He nodded, feeling numb. 

Supporting her weight with his shoulder, together they managed to free her arm. She was in a lot of pain, and the pod could go at any moment. Climbing the floor to the exit hatch didn't seem like an option at this point, they were both too weak to attempt it. Knowing even without an exchange of words, in unison, Ezra through the strength of the force and Sabine with a harsh  kick to the base of the polites chair, torn it from its frame and threw it through the windshield.   
      
The pod started to tilt the moment the glass shattered. They leapt through the opening, landing in a run. The pod gave one last lurch, tipping backward just as they made it out of range. A cloud of sand and dust filled the air. The pod groaned, and finally went silent.   
  
Sabline stood still, breathing heavily.

Ezra sucked in a breath, tearing his eyes away from the wreck to look skyward. Clouds dotted the sky, twin suns bearing down on them. From space, most of the moon seemed blue and green, where they had crashed however was a sparse bushland with more dead flora than green life. They had no cover. The land was as flat as it was scarce in three out of four directions. In the far far distance Ezra could make out a ring of mountains.    
  
“Over there,” Sabine called, slurring slightly less over her words now. He followed her line of sight and nearly sighed in relief. Nestled between the start of a canyon and red cliffs stood what looked like a warehouse. Behind it, from what he could tell, a ship graveyard. They could find supplies there, maybe even a working ship or some way to call Hera, possibly even get back to the Ghost. Whatever is left of her.   
  
It took half an hour to walk the distance.   
  
Ezra had just crossed the threshold after Sabline when a whistle pierced his ears. They both turned, ducking for shelter behind the door frame, more out of instinct than thought, a heart beat later what remained of the pod went up in a mushroom cloud.   

* * *

  
  
Ezra took this moment to take stock of what they had. They were in the lobby of the warehouse, or rather a ship repair lot in the middle of a dust bowl. The escape pod had joined the force. They had no way to contact Kanan (he did try, he was trying to now) and the Ghost crashed who-knows-where. Sabine’s arm was sprained, and didn't seem to be on the mend anytime soon. On the Pros side of things, Sabine had hooked her blaster to her belt before the crash. His lightsaber still clung to his own belt. And they had found enough fabric to create a substandard makeshift sling for her arm.     
  
After the pod went up in smoke, they had both moved to close the double doors at the entrance, but found the hinges had been melted away. They quickly gave up on that idea.   
  
At one end of the lobby, several booths and chairs still made up the waiting area. Worn with age and time the color had faded, and then darkened with dirt and grime. The seams holding the leather together were now undone, exposing the stuffing underneath. The countertop was covered in cobwebs, the registry off to the left was empty. A couple of receipts littered the surface next to it, yellowed and soft under his fingertips. He tried to make sense of the handwriting but the language was unrecognizable.   
  
Out of the corner of his eye Ezra found a door off to his right, half camouflaged by dust and grimy wallpaper. The hinges were rusty but the knob worked just fine. The space turned out to be an empty storage closet with not much more than eroding cardboard boxes and flimsi.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the lobby, Sabine found a lighter underneath the row of overturned shelves. Along with a bantha jerky wrapper and a half opened bag of moldy chips.   
  
Ezra could see dust drifting through the scattered light that managed to make its way through boarded up windows. Sand coated every surface from shelf to floor, giving the room a dark ivory tint.   
  
Directly parallel to the entrance sat another pair of double doors. The hinges were rusted but intact, the one to the left was open a foot. The dust trail behind it was notably lighter than the surrounding floor, and Ezra concluded it must have been blown open recently.

Finishing her own survey, Sabine glanced back. “I think we’ve seen enough here, let's see if there's anything left in the warehouse,”  
  
Just his luck. Ezra bit back his complaint and nodded. The steadiness of her voice was a relief.   
  
With Sabine next to him, Ezra pushed the door open. It groaned, sticky rust falling in flaky red specks on his boots. The hallway beyond was dark with only a faint light near the ceiling,  presumably boarded up windows on either end of the hall.

“Creepy,” Sabine muttered, shifting her arm more comfortably at her side. She nudged his left with her elbow and he nodded.

Ezra pulled his lightsaber from his belt and ignited it, squinting through the darkness as they slowly entered the hallway. His lightsaber cast a green glow onto the walls and floor, illuminating several crumpled cans and wooden boards they would have otherwise tripped on. It was cooler here, deeper into the building and Ezra felt a chill working its way up his spine. Cold sweat dripping down his back and his neck from the fading adrenaline.

* * *

 

The end of the hall framed an open archway, the space within held more light coming in from above. The hall branched out in two directions here, and to their left another endless tunnel of black.

Peering around the frame revealed the space within to be a large storage room for ship parts. The ceiling was high enough to fit a spacecraft under it. Storage crates and shelves piled high, obscuring any view of the far walls. The dim light filtering in caught particles of dust and sand, creating a glittering effect while suspended timelessly in midair.

Ezra clutched his light saber tightly as he and Sabine slowly entered. There was a lot to take in and even more to look through. With so many crates it seemed logical to assume there must be something left behind they could use.

“I'll start over here,” Sabine gestured to the row of shelves. “You take the crates over there. We will cover more ground that way.”

Ezra started with the largest crates against the far wall first and worked his way inward. The first of them were large enough to easily conceal a small escape pod, but much to his disappointment he found only shuttle parts within them. Most of the smaller crates either contained loose durasteel parts, cushioned by foam pellets, or were tipped over and empty.

He found more spiders and dead rats than he would have liked. Judging by the occasional curse he heard, echoing from the other end of the room, Sabine had also discovered them.

Originally Ezra had assumed the walls were made from loosely secured durasteel sheets, but as time wore on and the wind continued to batter the outer walls, he started to think otherwise.

The windows clattered loosely in the frames that held them, letting in a high pitched whistle. With the draft, you would have assumed the air here would be warmer in here, but if anything all Ezra felt was a chill.    
  
A sharp squeak interrupted his thoughts, he reacted by instinct and jumped with a yelp. A small furry creature darted over his foot, sickly tail lashing at his ankle before the thing darted through a space between two crates.

“Holy Sith.” Ezra breathed, trying to calm the thundering drum in his chest.   
  
Taking a deep breath Ezra peered in after the creature. To his surprise, he found the narrow opening just large enough for a fully grown man to shimmy through. A tug on his conscious told him it was definitely meant to be so, and so he found himself squeezing through the narrow opening after it.

Emerging from on the otherside, Ezra discovered a clearing of sorts. Crates, boxes, odds and ends of all sorts had been moved aside to create an open area free of clutter. The lack of dust coating the floor, as chipped and flaking as it was sent his stomach into a cartwheel.   
  
As it dawned on him, reality itself seemed to respond. The air grew thick. A heavy weight pressed down on his shoulders.

He gasped, stomach rolling for a moment as the familiarity of the presence in the air threatened to make him gag. _‘Maul!’_ Ezra reacted immediately, igniting his lightsaber before it was even fully free of his belt. 

When the Sith moved, he was forced to consider the unnerving question that rose with it, _'How did I not see him?'_

Maul moved slowly, each step was purposeful and silent over the cracked floor. Physically he looked the same as he had the last time Ezra had seen him, hollow cheekbones and the deep red of his skin a stark contrast to everything else around him. He held his hands clasped behind his back, the full focus of his red eyes trained on Ezra.

"Well... this is certainly a pleasant surprise, my apprentice." His voice came as a breathy rasp, wavering with an undertone of emotion he could not identify.

“Maul! What are _you_ doing here!” Ezra scowled at him, body tense as he started to pace at a safe distance from the sith, lightsaber trained on him. Of all people it had to be him.

Maul stood his ground, eyes tracking each step he took. He was reminded of the fyrnock on Fort Anaxes, with the way Maul’s gaze followed him. “So tense, and yet I have not raised a single hand against you.” A heavy breath, followed by a hitch. “If you _must_ know, an unusual Tie Fighter targeted my ship. Tragically I have been forced to take shelter here, as you can see.” He made a sweeping gesture with his left hand.

“Yeah, I see,” Ezra said, voice low, glaring at him. He felt like he could barely breathe. Where was Sabine? How could he warn her? This was bad. He knew he couldn't take Maul on by himself. He wasn't about to try and run either. What was worse, his stomach wouldn't stop doing flips. The nausea from earlier had decided to kick start the damn morning sickness, and he wasn't about to let his guard down around Maul, much less because he threw up. He just _wasn't_ going to do that. He tried to remember the meditative breathing techniques Kanan had taught him, forcing the nausea away.

As if sensing his thoughts, Maul took it as que to fill in the silence. “There is no need for that.” Maul knitted his brow. His voice took on a both exasperated and imploring quality to it, gesturing animatedly to his chest as if to declare his heartfelt honesty. “We are _allies._ ”

“ _Allies_!” Ezra hissed, his anger practically dripping from his voice. “How dare you call us allies! You betrayed me!” His grip on his lightsaber tightened painfully. If Sabine didn't get here soon he was going to do something he would regret.

“I may have betrayed _them,_ but I have never-- would never betray _you,_ my apprentice.” Maul replied, molten eyes darting from him to the four corners of the room and back rapidly.

“You _blinded_ Kanan! Tricked me into getting the holocron and activating a weapon! Is that what an _ally_ is to you?!” Ezra chanced a glance to where Maul had been looking only to see nothing. He growled, refocusing his attention to the sith.

“Did we not enter the temple for the same reason? I did not mislead you.” Maul ground his teeth, a low growl deep within his throat. “As for the Jedi... Ah... Well, let's just say we didn’t see eye to eye.”

Ezra had enough. He snarled, leaping at the other man and bringing his lightsaber down in a large swooping arc over his head. "Just shut up!"

The sith braced low. A flash of red swung upward from the far right, clashing with Ezra’s blade in a volley of sparks. In all of the two encounters the crew had with Maul, Ezra had not fought him directly. Watching the intensity in his combat style now seemed miles apart from actually engaging him in combat. The strength of the sith’s upward swing brought his blade sliding down his own, easily pushing it to the side, until Ezra suddenly found his blade nearly low enough to burn the floor.

Ezra hissed, disengaging and jumping away. Maul had a lot more power than his slim frame suggested. It was not the time to be underestimating him or overestimating himself, but he was angry, hormonal, and not thinking clearly. To his mortification he felt hot pricks at the back of his eyes from the sheer emotion, and he struggled to not cry like a lunatic as he brought his blade down in a diagonal swoop, aiming for the hilt of his lightsaber.

Maul saw the move coming and blocked, once again using his momentum to redirect his blade off to the side. When Ezra stumbled, the sith aimed a jabbed to his wrist. The force of the thrust pushing Ezra to back up again. Belatedly, Ezra realized he was being directed into a corner.

He stole a chance to glance around, scowling further when he saw no way out. He tried to lunge at Maul, to get him to back up, but the older man was too fast. His form solid while Ezra’s was sloppy at best in the heat of the moment and his anger.

“Have you learned your lesson yet, apprentice?” The sith hissed through his teeth. The roar of the lightsabers clashing pounded in Ezra’s ears. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the red glow.

A loud whine filled his ears. The sith jumped back, raising his blade to reflect the a volley of fire. The next shot never came, however the spot where he stood just moments ago smoldered. As his red eyes darted upward, Maul gave the source of his trouble a dark look of disgust.

“Last I checked you aren’t his mentor! I wouldn’t move an inch if I were you.” From atop a tall crate Sabine shot Ezra a grin. Her steady hand held the trigger of the blaster in a tight grip, keeping it level to crown of Maul's head. “Ezra, are you alright?”

He flashed her a bright, thankful grin. Sabine truly was a miracle worker. "I'm fine, thanks." He called, never taking his eyes off of Maul. "You're outnumbered and outgunned, Maul." He hissed.

“So it would seem.” The sith glared over his head at Sabine, the frustration in his voice was evident, with how it wavered he seemed to be struggling with it. His eyes flicked their attention back to Ezra, he opened his mouth as if to speak but stopped.  
  
Ezra saw his stance shifting and readied his lightsaber to take on the challenge. Whatever sharp threats were balanced on his tongue, however were quickly forgotten. Above them Sabine shouted,“Hit the deck!” The air filled with the electronic wail of blaster fire, and the heavy foot fall of a dozen stormtroopers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank you guys for the HUGE support and positivity we got on the last chapter! Six comments in one night! Wow! So to show our thanks, because comments REALLY motivate us, heres another chapter. <3 
> 
> (also, seasons three finale was bad and it should feel bad.)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you fancy yourself to draw some fan art that would be AMAZINGLY appreciated. You can link it to me here or on my tumblr or even my FA if you like.
> 
> Comments are appreciated!! They motivate us more than anything else!1 <3
> 
> tumblr- http://owletfluff.tumblr.com/
> 
> FA- https://www.furaffinity.net/user/owletfluff/


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